Quit smoking with essential oils

According to the World Health Organization: "One of the greatest threats to public health is the tobacco epidemic, which kills nearly six million people a year. More than five million of these deaths are the direct result of tobacco use, while more than 600,000 deaths are a result of exposure to secondhand smoke. About one person dies every six seconds because of smoking. About half of current users will die from diseases related to smoking.
There are more than 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, of which at least 250 are known to be harmful and more than 50 are known to cause cancer.

Equally harmful is passive smoking and there is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke inhaled indirectly:

• secondhand smoke causes to adults serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, including coronary heart disease and lung cancer,
• it causes sudden death to infants,
• it causes low birth weight to pregnant women,
• almost half of children breathe regularly air polluted by tobacco smoke in public places,
• over 40% of children have at least one parent who smokes,
• secondhand smoke causes more than 600,000 premature deaths each year,
• in 2004, children accounted for 28% of deaths due to passive smoking."

It is not easy to stop a chronic habit as smoking. But it is worth trying if you consider the benefits to individual, family and public health as well as to family budget! Even the restriction of smoking requires a lot of will and determination, while very few people are able to stop smoking completely without any discomfort or withdrawal symptoms.

Many people resort  lately to electronic cigarettes but scientists suggest a conservative attitude towards their use, as mentioned in the article "The truth about electronic cigarettes".

Essential oils are not miraculous, but they can play a big role in your quest to quit smoking. With the help of aromatherapy you may be able to narrow your cravings for a cigarette and manage more efficiently the withdrawal syndrome.

Ideal for this purpose is tobacco essential oil. The deep brown essential oil has a warm, rich tobacco-like odor and is mainly used to add a masculine and dry base note in perfumes and other personal care products.

If you want to use tobacco essential oil in your battle against smoking drip one to two drops directly on your wrist, on a fragrance strip (those that stores use to sample perfumes) or a handkerchief. Whenever you feel the need to smoke just bring your wrist or the strip near your nose and inhale. The action of bringing something near your nose resembles the movement you would make in order to put a cigarette in your mouth while the strong smell of tobacco will comfort your senses and will "mislead" your brain. After a few days you will feel less and less the need to inhale the essential oil and gradually you will completely eliminate the bad habit of lighting up a cigarette.

If you want to use tobacco essential oil with a diffuser or in personal care products it forms unique blends with bergamot, clary sage and sandalwood.